I Think Winter Might be Ending...

This has been the longest winter ever. I remember getting my winter tires on in November after we'd already had 2 or 3 snowstorms. I think my tires need replacing next year from all the wear on snow and ice this year. For those who haven't had the joy of living in Ottawa this year - we have had well over 400cm of snow this winter. I think we're 12 cm from the all-time record. That sounds impressive and I can report that I drove to work every day - even the days when I had to check the traffic on the road at the end of our street, back up 20 metres and 'giv-ur' (Canadian slang for accelerating as quickly as possible so I don't get stuck). I took it all in stride but there were some moments. We were lucky. We live outside the city so we had a big yard to dump our snow. The streets throughout the city was a whole different story. The streets were barely wide enough for one car, let alone 2 cars and pedestrians (since clearing the sidewalks was abandoned long ago). The city of Gatineau publicly stated that they wouldn't clear sidewalks and would instead focus on clearing lanes of major streets that had been snowbanks. Many 4 lane streets became 2 lane streets. On the night of the BIG snow in March, a friend of ours who is a firefighter was working. Unlucky him. Since the ambulances couldn't go down most streets or roads, the firefighters had to carry people on stretchers through knee-deep snow to meet the ambulance on major roads. That must have been exhausting. I know, because I went out to play with the kids and had to walk through hip-deep snow. It's not an easy thing.

This is Anders in our back yard. Good thing the water in the pool is frozen or I'm afraid it wouldn't meet code. Note how Anders didn't sink into the snow.



This is Konrad playing in the backyard. This is my kitchen window above the sink so that is one big pile of snow he's sitting on.


Eric even got our snowblower stuck. Seriously. He had to dig it out with a shovel.


Eric braving new paths. What fun this winter has been.


And here are my boys in front of the sliding door. Good thing Anders doesn't sink through the snow because I fear he would have been lost forever!


And now I think winter might be ending. We can actually see grass in some places - like over the septic bed. Mind you, I think we will have snow on our back deck well into May. Perhaps it will melt just in time for Eric's birthday BBQ.

'Why Doesn't Jennifer Blog More Often' - Here's Why

In response to Laura's blog entry - I will raise my voice, speaking out for infrequent bloggers everywhere.

Why I haven't blogged for over a month - I've been busy. Lots has happened - believe me - plenty enough but I have been too tired to write about it. AND - work has been terribly depressing. PLUS - we've misplaced our camera again. What's a good blog entry without pictures? Luckily, other people take pictures. So, I might be using some of them.

Christmas was eventful. Ward Christmas Dinners, school concert for Konrad, baking cookies with the kids and visiting others. We particularly visited an elderly couple in a retirement home nearby - the Greenfields. It was fun. She doesn't hear very well so she would speak over her husband while he was speaking to us. Neither would stop talking so Eric and I looked at each other - not knowing which way to look. We tag teamed it - He listened to her and I listened to him. The kids had fun. They ate one of the muffins we brought for the Greenfield's and also managed to score one of their apples.

We also had a dinner party at the Bondarchuk home. They've just moved to Ottawa and wanted to thank those that helped them move into their home. Here's a couple pictures from the evening:


Christmas - there was a Christmas Eve that we hosted for a few friends - food, singing, A Christmas Story, gingerbread houses.



On Christmas Day we drove to Cambridge to enjoy the Jakob Family festivities. Food. Turkey dinner, pies, crepes the next morning, turkey soup, homemade turkey alfredo pizza, french toast. My stomach was in complete shock. I felt so gross lastweek but who can not enjoy the wonderful food? Konrad played the Wii and Anders... pretended to play the Wii.

Then on to the McCartney Family Christmas - more turkey with all the trimmings and fabuous pies. It was nice to see everyone - it's been a long time since we've all been together (except for Laura of course).








Braden was baptized Dec 27th. A very busy and family-filled week.

I'm Not a Geek!

20% Geek

Surprise! Well, I had my suspicions. I know that I'm not very geeky.

Adventures in Babysitting

Child care has been ... varied since I returned to work in August. We found a nice lady nearby for 3 weeks and then their Aunt Eiryn came to watch them for about a month. I think that they had fun. Erin also likes to take photos... and who can resist wonderful photos of the boys?



Yes, Anders is peeking through luncheon meat - the kind with macaroni and cheese in it. I didn't buy it - it was leftover from Isabelle's reception.





Be prepared. The following photos may cause heart palpitations. That was my reaction when I walked in.

Where to Start?

How do you catch up on 2 months of happenings at the Jakob household?
Konrad loved playing soccer this summer. He loved to be a goalie and LOVED scoring goals. It was a lot of fun. During their 'Family Fun' year-end tournament, Konrad quickly abandoned his position on the field when he saw a parent eating rice chips. He darted straight for the bag and begged a snack. One boy on his team professed his love on the field. He kissed one of the girls on the team and then ran victory laps. They also made 'grass angels'. It was a fun day.


AND my boy started school. He was nervous about getting on the bus alone but I advised him to grab onto the railing and walk up the stairs. Everything else would be fine. I guess it went fine because he has loved the past month of school.

Konrad is a very social boy. Our neighbours know him well. If he sees Ben, the boy across the street, he yells out from the house, 'Ben! Ben! Ben!...' (and so on) until Konrad can make his way outside. If Konrad sees our neighbour Fritz, he shouts, 'Fritz! Fritz! Fritz!'. Konrad will go to the fence daily and negotiate with Fritz for his daily vegetable ration. Konrad has managed to receive 4 cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots and rhubarb.

One day, Konrad was inside the house doing what boys do... when he spotted Fritz walking down the road. Fritz does a daily walk down to the mailbox at around 3:30. Konrad ran outside to greet him but was too late. I suggested to Konrad that he talk to Fritz when he returns from the mailbox. Konrad flipped the recycling bin over and waited......




If you look closely enough, Fritz is in the distance returning from the mailbox. My son is social ... and tenacious.

He's Got Wheels...Two of Them.

Can you believe it? Konrad is riding a bike without training wheels. He's already been on hour-long bike rides since then. He was so excited... can you see the smile on his face? There never was a prouder boy than Konrad.

Anders Birthday! (from July 18th - A delayed post)

Anders birthday was in July but I hadn't downloaded the photos until yesterday. Anders turned two and we spent a day at the Toronto Metro Zoo. Isn't that what every family does in the summer? The kids had a blast.


















Anders loves animals right now. He's all about the animals. Elephants are one of his very favourite animals so we had to take a photo!

























I was getting a few requests for proof that I had actually made the most amazing raspberry lemon cream cake ever. Here it is. The cake that I will never make again.




And the end to a great birthday for a 2 year old - swimming with Grandpa Jakob. It was a great day.

Jakob-Binch Family Reunion in Elk Lake

I know that I have a lot of other things to catch up on BUT I actually have photos for this event so I will document it. We arrived Thursday night with two large bass in our cooler. Yum-yum. Eric's Uncle Karl and Aunt Patsy hosted the reunion at their home in Elk Lake. Nearby, at their local landfill site, the bears feast on garbage. Sometimes there are more than 8 bears. I think it's sad but the bears are particularly hungry this year since the blueberries aren't as plentiful. Anders and Konrad had so much fun. There was a trampoline, lots of fishing, boat rides, fireworks and lots of cousins to play with. I should probably explain Eric's family to those of you whom do not belong to the clan. Grandma Christa Binch came to Canada from Germany with Eric Jakob and had Eleanor, Karl, Klaus, Martin, and Erica. After her husband died, she remarried Henry Binch. Then she had more children - Wally, Johnny and Ray. That's a lot of kids and there are MANY grandchildren who have followed. There's much more to this story and I am new in the Jakob clan so I don't know a part of it.



This is a photo of Grandma Binch at the beach with the family. She loves the water.




Here's Uncle Martin with their new speedboat. It was a lot of fun EXCEPT when you tried to speak to someone next you. The spit and drool would then fly out of your mouth. Speed.



Here's a great photo of some of Grandma Binch's grandchildren and great-grandchildren.






We had a great time. Eric and I took the boys out fishing Saturday evening and we caught several small perch, pickerel and pike. The kids were pretty excited about that. I read a short history of Elk Lake and it was very interesting. Ojibway peoples claim that there were elk and caribou here. There is a long history of mining silver and logging. There was a notable logging baron, J.R. Booth . He logged the Montreal River and sent the logs downstream toward Lake Temiskaming, then the Ottawa River. His lumber mills were in Ottawa. Like many small towns in northern Ontario, Elk Lake was once a hubbub of activity when mining was at its peak. I can vouch for the fact that it's pretty sleepy these days.

Happy Birthday Anders!

Unfortunately, I can only give a written account of this past week's festivities as Eric has ALL of the photos. Sorry! What fun is a blog entry without photos?

Last week we went to the Toronto Metro Zoo to celebrate Anders' second birthday. We had lots of fun and the boys particularly enjoyed the seal, elephants, hippos and giraffes. Afterwards, we had dinner at the Chaggares home in Newmarket. It was nice to see Jen. She's due to have a baby in a week or so but she is oh-so-lucky. Her belly is probably less than half the size of mine towards the end. Ah well.

We also enjoyed a couple days at Grandpa and Grandma Jakob's home. I spent 4 hours making a birthday cake. It was a Raspberry Lemon Cream Cake - absolutely delicious. The eggs needed to be whipped for 10 minutes, bake the cake for an hour, prepare the cream on the stove for 20 minutes, cool for an hour, then mix the cream with whipped cream and assemble the cake. THEN it was supposed to set for 4 hours in the fridge. I will never make this cake again.

During our road trip back home on Thursday, we raced the monsoon blowing in from the west. We stopped at several warehouses to visit Eric's clients (actually, we were in the car while Eric visited), ate lunch at Frankie Tomato's and visited Viceroy Homes in Port Hope. Meanwhile, the monsoon was gaining ground on us. In Port Hope, it overtook us and due to a pit stop in Kingston we didn't regain the lead until we were nearly in Ottawa. Ah well. It rained for a good 24 hours on Friday anyway.

A Delayed Tag ... But I'm not Passing it On.

Places I worked...
1. Babysitter Extraordinaire
2. Chinchilla Farm
3. McDonald's
4. The Arthritis Society

Movies I can watch over and over...
1. I do like Pride and Prejudice...
2. I
3. don't
4. know.

Places I've lived...
1. Codrington
2. Toronto
3. Hamilton
4. Ottawa

Favourite TV shows...
1. So You Think You Can Dance!
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. Lost
4. The Office

Places I've been...
1. St. Charles bridge in Prague
2. bull fight in Nimes
3. cabin on Galliano Island
4. green, leather couch in a hostel in Utah.

Favourite foods...
1. sushi
2. good salads
3. fresh veggies and berries
4. chocolate.

Majors I've considered...
1. law
2. engineering
3. international development
4. peace and conflict studies

Places I'd rather be...
1. asleep in my bed
2. in a clean house
3. in my garden
4. Morocco

There! I don't think this information is very revealing, though. Random information that most people would guess to be true anyway. I won't be challenging anyone to do this. I make it a point to NEVER forward chain emails... or anything like that. Instead of bringing bad luck on myself, I feel I am improving the world by de-cluttering e-mail inboxes.

Does God Live Further Than Space?

I haven't done the 'Question from Konrad' segment for many months. Here's another question from the mouth of Konrad. Does God Live Farther Than Space? and within the same breath, he told me that God's mother is older than him. This kid is intense! I do know some things but - how do you explain the precise domicile of God without making some part up? And how much can a 4 year old really grasp? Obviously a lot.

The French Conclusion...Really.

And THEN we rented a car in Monaco and drove all over France. Really. We drove to Bourges (where the cleanest public toilets were - the smell of bleach was strong and it was super-clean), visited some Chateaux Chambord

and Chenonceau,

then drove to LeMans to stay for the night. THEN we drove to Mont St-Michel,

visited the monastery,

drove to Caen and stayed for the night. THEN we visited Juno Beach Centre along the Normandy Beaches. That's where we lost Eric's camera - very sad. Thank goodness we didn't lose many pictures. From Normandy, we drove to Paris in record time. The speed limit is 130 km/h and we were pushing it to make the deadline to hand in our rental car at Place des Invalides in Paris. Anyone who knows where Place des Invalides is, knows that we also had to drive through Paris. If we were in the Amazing Race, we would've come in first place. With Jessica's directions and my driving, we made it on time. I was actually quite proud of myself - I drove like a true Parisienne. It was a fun challenge. We spent the weekend with Sister Janet Stone who was the most hospitable hostess. We truly felt like we were at home. We shopped for... 6 or 7 hours. I bought some nice shoes. We went on a touristy boat ride and took lots of funny pictures of other tourists falling asleep.



We had lots of fun, lots of good food and lots of good memories. Thanks Jessica for being a great travel partner. I appreciated your calm when I had a few moments of anxiety (ie. lost camera, lost Bed and Breakfast in Bourges). And then I came home and was in a car accident within half an hour. Bummer.

France Part II

I ended the last entry in Avignon, a nice city. We attended an interesting event Friday night - a bull fight in a Roman coliseum where gladiators fought to the death. I was expecting to leave quickly after the first bullfight (is it one word or two?) BUT I came to appreciate it for what it is. I don't know very much about the history of bullfighting but there is a lot of tradition and pageantry. I was reminded that this tradition originated in a day when life was dirty and nasty. People died all the time simply because they didn't brush their teeth.. (abcesses...) Anyway, if we were to imagine ourselves ranching in a hot, dry place 200 years ago, perhaps a bullfight held significance other than what we may consider today. It was actually interesting. The crowd loved the second ranked bullfighter in the region (or perhaps the world, for all I know). People were wildly jumping with excitement during the 'fight' and threw shirts, hats, flowers and other varied objects into the ring. I noticed a system - if the audience was happy with the round they waved white handkerchiefs. When people were unhappy about the bull suffering or whatever, they'd whistle and yell.



The next stop was Marseille. We visited Notre Dame de la Garde on the highest point in the city.



Everywhere we went, there were celebrations and parties. Feria Whitsuntide in Nimes, league title soccer match in Marseille, Grand Prix in Monaco, D-Day Anniversary in Normandy (well, we were a couple days early) and the French Open in Paris. It made finding accomodation difficult. In Marseille, we were lucky to get the last 2 rooms in a hotel downtown for a reasonable price since our previous B&B hostess (Andree Roustan) knew the hotel's owner's parents. (Did that make sense to you?) The rooms were small - not much bigger than my bathroom. BUT at least we had a place to stay. For the second time, I could not visit Chateau D'If off the coast of Marseille. It was too windy. How many times do I need to visit Marseille before I can actually get to this island? Chateau D'If was a place to hold prisoners - The Count of Monte Cristo was written/supposed to be there. I did do something in Marseille that I'd missed out on last time - eating bouillabaise. Here it is -



YUMMY!!!

Next stop was ... Menton. Menton is past Monaco-Monte Carlo but just before the Italian border. It is a beautiful town without as many of the flashy cars. The first night, our waiter actually poured us shots. After much protesting, I challenged him to drink it (I wasn't going to). We went to an Italian restaurant the second night and I had the best gnocchi of my life!!! After eating it, I wondered why we hadn't thought of making time to take a train into Italy for a day. Ah well, another time. Menton was beautiful, though. Monaco was good too.





Ok. That's all I can write tonight. Thanks to Grandpa Jakob for stopping by tonight to eat ice cream. Happy Father's Day to my dad. I don't have his new phone number yet which probably sounds horrible but it isn't really. Oh - and for those who heard of my plight in the garden (well, one of many), I don't think that I have marijuana growing after all. I'm not sure whether it will end up being cherry tomatoes but at least I'm not raising illegal cash crops in my back yard.

France, In Retrospect

So, here's a rundown. I travelled with a friend of mine, Jessica Lee Wen. We actually travelled really well together and are still good friends. We flew into Paris on separate flights, met up, and travelled by train to visit with Angelina Luigi Booth's family in Castelnau Montratier (near Cahors, near Toulouse). Jessica got a kick out of the idea that you need to PAY to use the toilets in Europe. We arrived in Cahors where Henri (Angelina's mom's boyfriend) came to pick us up. They live in a beautiful part of France, surrounded by forest and farms. We had a great meal at their home - charcuterie, pate and cheese.

We spent the next day lazing about and eating great food. I loved the fresh cherries everywhere. Eric would've been in heaven, picking fresh fruit from the trees and eating it. We had such a feast that night. More family came bringing quiche, more homemade pate and we contributed with a flan and tarte aux pommes for dessert. We left the table at 11:30pm.



We travelled to Nimes and Avignon the next day (Thursday). We stayed at a fabulous Bed and Breakfast 'Beaupertuis' where Andree Roustan welcomed us and helped us plan some of our trip. On Friday, we explored more of Avignon. It's a beautiful city. We toured the Palais des Papes and the Pont Benezet (or more commonly known 'Pont d'Avignon'). We danced on the bridge at the request of Jessica's kids. We danced and we sang... I felt a bid self-conscious but we did it.

Welcome Home!

For those who are anticipating fabulous pictures or stories of the food in France, you'll be waiting. After travelling for a loooong time on Monday, I finally made it home to the Ottawa airport. On the drive home, we were in a car accident. The kids were fine, Eric was fine. I was turned looking at the kids when Eric slammed on the brakes so I have some soreness and bruising across the neck, chest, etc. I'll be in physio 3 times per week until it's better. I've generally been feeling pretty tired and spacy - whether it's from jet lag or after-effects from the accident, I'm not sure.

Not to worry though, you'll see photos in a couple of days.

Happy Birthday Eric!

Eric turns 30 on Monday. Since I'm flying out on his birthday, we decided to celebrate it today. Although I didn't plan his Birthday BBQ in advance, lots of good friends made it out to our house for a good time. There was meat... and salads and cookies and mosquitos. Oh! - there was also the hockey game. We were all in the living room when the Ottawa Senators won the game, thereby winning the Eastern Conference. On they go to the Stanley Cup. Thanks to everyone who came out today - whether it was golfing or eating. It was reminiscent of last year's Canada Day BBQ. Last year, everyone watched the World Cup - this year it was hockey. The kids were remarkably well behaved - lots of little ones running in and out, playing soccer, riding bikes, eating hot dogs. I even got to hold Scott Wride for the first time ever. He fell asleep on me despite the children crawling on me and the shouts when the Senators won the game. He's sweet.

Congrats to Eric for living the first 30 years of your life. I've been there for... 8 1/2 of them - the best ones, right? I hope so. Happy Birthday! and there is more... I just can't divulge the rest of the birthday secrets yet.

Depressing Season Finales

So, what's the deal with depressing season finales? First, Grey's Anatomy. I am totally tired of George and Izzy's moping. It's painful to watch. And what's the deal with Meredith not wanting McDreamy? And THEN the show was topped off by Burke leaving Christina at the altar. These people are not normal. I know it's a show and must be entertaining but this goes beyond entertaining - this is just depressing. I can't believe that I anticipate watching this show every week - am I sadistic?

After Grey's Anatomy, I watched ER. Another depressing show. I don't remember all of the character's names but one guy has his legs amputated and then Neela gets trampled at a war demonstration. This was a sad ending to a sad night of TV but ER has had crazier storylines in the past. Someone's arm being severed by a helicopter, then a couple seasons later, a helicopter lands on this same individual. Helicopters had it out for this guy.

Should I stop watching. Probably. Will I? Hmmm...

He's a Boy - and he's Four!

He's our boy - and he's four. His proper birth date is April 23, 2003. His entry into this world was difficult and he was a difficut baby as well. After he became a year old, things seemed to get easier and easier. He's energetic and intense but these are positive characteristics if we can have the patience it requires. Answering the fiftieth question before 7am is difficult some days. And don't think that these are siimple questions - these are scientific, philosophical questions. Anyhow - his birthday. I let Konrad decide what to eat for his 'birthday dinner' and he chose Daddy's lasagna. Daddy's lasagna has chopped broccoli, carrots, etc and meat. Konrad agreed that he wanted this meal despite the beef. Daddy wasn't there to make the lasagna but I tried my best to replicate the dish. Konrad helped me make fresh bread, lasagna and his chocolate birthday cake that day. He's a lovely boy. He's become a wonderful boy. I know... every child is special. But this is when I get to speak about my Konrad - it's his birthday. He loves math, numbers and learning about all sorts of things. He has everyone's age memorized in his 'filing cabinet brain'. We love him. He loves to keep his room tidy and he is the best big brother to Anders. We can't wait to see him learn and grow even more.

The Saturday following his birthday, we had a party for him at the MFRC. It was a joint party with a little boy named Lucas from his nursery school class. We had Tom from 'Reptiles Rock' come in and it was a great time. Yes, that's a tarantula on Konrad's hand and a boa constrictor on Eric. I've never held so many snakes in my life. Eric tried to smash the pinata but it just fell to the floor where ERic repeatedly beat it with a bat until it finally opened. That was the toughest pinata I've ever seen. Thanks to all the friends who made the day special.

I just spent 40 minutes writing a great blog entry. I'm a little unhappy that it has disappeared. Sorry guys, but you're going to have to wait a little longer. I will blog soon about the eventful month we've had.

Today, I accompanied Konrad on his school's field trip on the O-Train. It was a long trip... and I DO have photos... one day. BUT not tonight... SORRY!!!